- The global community must have felt extremely cagey about the way the geopolitical situation is turning out to be in the Middle East with the ongoing conflict between Israel-Hamas not showing any signs of abating. The continued conflict between the two has rendered every effort undertaken by the global leadership to usher in much-needed peace in the region futile. With none of the two warring factions prepared to take a back seat to allow peace overtures to take effect, the people are being subjected to extreme hardships on every humanitarian front. Forget about innocent lives being lost, just thinking about the enormous economic challenges lying ahead would make any sane leader go weak on the knees. But not the two warning leaders here.
PC: The Economist
- However, what must rudely awaken the entire world is the increasingly dangerous new war front opening between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah that has already seen both sides inflicting casualties. Moreso, on the Lebanon side since Israel launched attacks on the southern side. People closely following the events unearthing in the region would have noticed how Hezbollah baited Israel for months. Worryingly, Israeli PM Netanyahu’s politics may still lead to a larger regional conflict which the entire world is cagey about. The recent deadly airstrikes by Israel and Hezbollah’s retaliation by firing more than 200 rockets into northern Israel, mark a huge escalation in the 11-month-old conflict. There’s little doubt now this is an open war.
- At last count, 492 people were killed and another 1,645 were injured in the Israeli barrage, the highest single-day death toll for Lebanon since its 1975-1990 civil war. But blame also lies with Hezbollah, which has been baiting Israel for months with Beirut doing little to rein in the militant group. Notably, the militant group calculated that it could continue low-level strikes against Israel in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza. This would stretch Tel Aviv’s military resources and impact its economy. Hezbollah also bet that Israel would be wary of opening up a two-front war. But with tens of thousands of Israelis unable to return to their homes along the northern border, and Netanyahu possibly looking for ways to reduce Gaza attacks, the Israeli attack was inevitable.
PC: AI Jazeera
- Further, Hezbollah would have thought it could absorb whatever Israel threw at it. But the pager and walkie-talkie bombings last week hit the group hard. Of course, Mossad’s modus operandi has raised worldwide concerns about weaponizing everyday electronic devices. Also, Israel is all set to earn international opprobrium by escalating another conflict on the Lebanese front. But at this point, Netanyahu just doesn’t care. And the US is in election mode unable to rein him in. Yes, Netanyahu’s desire for political survival is playing a part in all of this. But he’s made a clever calculation with Hezbollah. Arab nations – who were troubled by the Gaza operation – will not mind the offensive against the Shia militant group. This does not augur well for the region and the world though. Will saner sense prevail at both ends? Unlikely.
